Leoncino.

Given how popular the scrambler look has become of late, it is of little surprise that Benelli have resurrected the Leoncino name with this scrambler-esque motorbike. This stylised bike even features the lion of Pesaro (Benelli’s home town) on the front mudguard, a throwback to the original bike that bore the same name. Power comes from a totally new liquid-cooled four-valve DOHC 500-cc twin-cylinder engine that has an output rating of 47.6 PS at 8,500 RPM and 45 Nm of maximum twist force at 4,500 RPM. Transmission is, of course, via a six-speed gearbox. The Leoncino’s chassis comprises the trademark Benelli trellis; the front end with 50-mm USD forks while the at the rear there is an offset monoshock with adjustment for spring preload and hydraulic rebound damping. Stopping power comes from a pair of 320-mm dia rotors with radial four-piston callipers and a single 260-mm dia rotor with twin-piston callipers. For those of you who couldn’t go to EICMA, this wonderful looking machine will also grace the Benelli stall at the forthcoming Auto Expo next February according to the company’s top management.

Updates: Honda CBR 150R and 250R.

Honda seem to be on the upswing with their updates too and this time it’s their two small-capacity sports bikes that have received cosmetic upgrades. To begin with, the Honda CBR 150R is now available with attractive and sporty graphics. HMSI have priced it at Rs 1.23 lakh (ex-Delhi). Along with the CBR 150R, Honda have also updated their premium offering in the 250-cc category, the CBR 250R. The new 250R now comes with fancy stickers and new colours such as red, black and white. This new CBR is priced at Rs 1.60 lakh (ex-Delhi) for the standard non-ABS variant and at Rs 1.89 lakh (ex-Delhi) for the combined ABS version. Apart from these changes the bikes remain the same as before.

Dragster RR LH44.

The Dragster RR LH44 is the second new model for 2016 from Schiranna. MV Agusta claim this is a truly exclusive machine inspired by F1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton’s passion for MV Agusta. The Mercedes AMG Petronas driver collaborated with the MV Agusta designers, contributing to the definition of over 50 design details to make the LH44 stand out from the standard Dragster RR. Most of these changes are manufactured in Ergal and carbon-fibre with a 3K opaque finish. In terms of graphics, the LH44 was inspired by the graphics on the threetime world champion’s helmet and features a white colour scheme and the panther logo, which is also sewn into the quiltfinish Alcantara saddle. Needless to say, Lewis’s number 44 features on the exhaust manifolds and autographed screen. Production will be limited to 244 bikes.